Who Should I Start? Matt Prater or Chad Ryland

Tuesday, October 15, 7:55 PM

The Arizona Cardinals placed kicker Matt Prater (knee) and defensive lineman Bilal Nichols (neck) on Injured Reserve on Tuesday, meaning both players will have to miss at least the next four games. Nichols will miss the rest of the season. To replace Prater on the active 53-man roster, the Cardinals elevated Chad Ryland from the practice squad. In the last two games with Prater out, Ryland has gone 5-for-6 on field goals and made both of his extra points. Prater made all six of his field goals and went 10-for-10 on extra points in his four games, surpassing the career 1,800-point plateau. The earliest Prater will be eligible to return from IR will be after the team's Week 11 bye for a Week 12 contest against the division-rival Seattle Seahawks. Ryland will be a poor streaming option for fantasy managers in Week 7 against the Los Angeles Chargers on Monday night.

Tuesday, October 22, 11:45 AM

Arizona Cardinals kicker Chad Ryland drilled his only attempt, which was the 32-yard game-winning field goal for the Cardinals on Monday night. Ryland also hit two extra points to go along with the game-winning field goal. This was a grinding matchup between two offenses that played at a slower pace, and the Cardinals' offense didn't find themselves in a field goal situation until the end of the game, limiting Ryland's opportunities. With the Cardinals' offense still struggling to find consistency, Ryland doesn't yet crack the list of fantasy-relevant kickers. However, the Cardinals will face some mid- to lower-tier defenses in the coming weeks, which could make Ryland a potential streaming option in the future.